sour candy
by Waffles Of Doom
Summary: in which Freddie is frustrated, Sam is heartbroken and conclusions are reached. / post iPear Store.


**sour candy.**

"I'll never see you again, will I?"

"Nope," Sam said, popping the p slightly as she tugged her nametag over her head, letting the plastic card fall to the floor. Smirking to herself, Sam deliberately stepped a little to the left, making sure the flimsy tag broke under the forceful weight of her foot.

It would probably come out of her paycheck, but meh. Sam wasn't one to dwell on things, especially those of the money related kind. There was always other places to get money.

Tugging the bright red Pear Store shirt over her head, Sam tossed it carelessly into a dumpster, feeling slightly relieved as it flew out fo her sight. Sure, she had enjoyed the whole getting money for conning people aspect (_because really, she knew nothing about computers, she was just very good at convincing people), _but her boss..

Her boss was a bitch, basically. And Sam, she was the only one that got to make fun of Freddie, it was her _job_, as ex-girlfriend/best friend/generally awesome human to have around. It just wasn't on to have someone else tease, and berate Freddie.

And she cared. Sam, by now, could admit to herself that she really, _really _cared about Freddie. She **loved **him, despite how stupid he had been acting the past few weeks.

"Benson!" Sam yelled, noticing Freddie shuffling along futher up the street, kicking the kerb with his neatly laced converse, his shoulders hunched. "Hey, Benson, wait up!"

"What do you want Sam?" Freddie didn't turn around, but she noticed. Sam noticed that his voice was thick with tears, hoarse from his freak out in the Pear Store.

"You okay?" She asked softly.

"Oh, I'm absolutely **brilliant **Sam, honestly." Freddie snapped, spinning around to face her. His face was flush, from both anger and the tears he was trying his best not to cry, and his hair was a complete mess from running his hands through it.

"I just got fired from my dream job, because of you." Freddie continued, his voice rising. "My dream job Sam, not yours. Y-you've got the restaraunt in school with Gibby, couldn't you let me have this one thing? I've wanted a job at the Pear Store since the first one opened in Seattle, and you- you fucking ruined it for me!"

"Its just a job Freddie," Sam rolled her eyes slightly. "There's other Pear Store's in-"

"Thats not the point Sam!" Freddie interrupted. "Thats not the fucking point."

"Then enlighten me Benson. Whats the real point here?"

"Why d'you do it?" He asked brokenly after a pause.

"Because I like pushing your buttons." Sam shrugged, as if the answer was obvious.

"Right." Freddie nodded. "Got it."

With that, he turned on his heel, and started to walk away.

"Okay, _no_." Sam said, grabbed onto the sleeve of his shirt. "That is not how this conversation is going to end."

"How's it supposed to end?" Freddie asked. "Do you want me to laugh about it? Ha, ha, Sam you just got me fired. This is fucking hilarious, lets just laugh about it, and I'll forget that you've ruined something important to me yet again."

"Yet again? _What _are you talking about?"

"N.E.R.D camp?"

Sam's face fell. "I thought we weren't going to bring that up again Freddie. We talked about it."

"No, you and Carly talked about it." Freddie said. "I never got a word in edgeways."

"Yeah, you did." Sam said. "You yelled at me for ages over it."

Freddie didn't reply.

"This isn't just about N.E.R.D camp, is it?" Sam asked. "Or the Pear Store? There's something else, isn't there?"

"Yeah, its _you_!" Freddie yelled. "Its _you_ Sam, you're the problem here! You're just **infuriating**!"

Sam looked confused. "What-"

"Why is this so easy for you? Why is so easy for you to forget me?" Freddie said bitterly. "Its like, its like it's not even effecting you, and I'm trying, I'm trying really hard not to, to not want to pin you up against the nearest damn wall and just _kiss_ you, and its not working! And none of this is even effecting-"

"Its not effecting me?" Sam was furious. "Its not effecting me? Are you kidding me Benson? Its been _killing _me, because not only did I loose you, I lost you to Carly! As always, I loose everything to Carly, absolutely fucking perfect Carly."

"How did you loose me to Carly?"

"_Is it too late for you too love me?" _Sam screamed, her eyes blurring. "Or don't you remember that?"

"I didn't-"

"Don't try and deny it," Sam said. "Gibby heard you say it to her. So clearly Benson, you're having no trouble getting over me-"

"Thats not it!" Freddie interrupted. "I only said that because, because I thought it would make things got back to normal! I thought if I liked Carly again, you know like I used to? I thought things would be easier, I thought I wouldn't have these _feelings_ for you."

He looked at her desperately. "I thought it would help."

"Well, I guess it did help." Sam said, her voice shaking.

"It didn't Sam, I swear-"

"You can really get over me now." Sam ignored his protests. "Because you've ruined any chance we had of getting back together."

"By saying that one stupid thing?" Freddie shook his head. "No, Sam-"

"Maybe you should have thought more about your stupid idea to use my _best friend _to get over me then, shouldn't you?" Sam said, giving him a shove. "Because I'm nobody's second best Benson. I'm not going to play runner up to Carly again."

"You're not second best to me Sam," Freddie said desperately. "It was stupid, and I realised how dumb it was the second I said it, and if I could take it back Sam-"

"Thats just it Freddie," Sam said. "You can't take it back. Just like I can't take by the fact I got you fired, or how I ruined your application to N.E.R.D camp. You can't take things back."

"You can try and make up for them."

Sam shook her head. "Not this time Freddie. I'm sick of you making me feel like this, I'm tired of being hurt because of you, because you can't think before you fucking speak."

"Its not like you don't hurt me Sam." Freddie said quietly, sniffing as he wiped roughly at his eyes.

"Then maybe we're just no good for each other." Sam said, trying to blink back tears. "Maybe we just shouldn't try anymore."

Freddie looked at her, not bothering to stop the tears that had started to freely flow from his dark brown eyes. "Maybe we shouldn't." He found himself saying.

"That's s-settled then." Sam straightened up, trying to put on a brave face. "We should just leave each other alone."

With that, she turned around, wrapping her arms around herself, as if she was trying to hold herself together. A choking sob stopped her in her tracks, and she looked back to see Freddie leaning against a wall, sliding to the floor. He was openly sobbing, not caring that there was dozens of people walking past him.

Every part of her body screamed at her to go back, to try and fix things, but she didn't. Instead, Sam chose to unlock her phone, opening up a new message that she quickly sent to Carly.

_You should check on Freddie._

Stuffing her phone in the back pocket of her jeans, Sam roughly pushed her blonde curls off her face, forcing back the sobs she really needed to let out. Freddie, he was the one who needed people.

Sam? She had gone most of her life without anyone around to wipe her tears, or comfort her. She'd be fine, eventually.

Sam Puckett had never needed anybody, least of all some nub of a boy like Freddie Benson.

/

**author's note; **Its been quite a while since I've uploaded anything to fanfiction, but iPear Store inspired me. A little. To write angst, at least.

Being entirely honest about it, I've lost my love for iCarly, and I'm going to try and wrap up any of the unfinished works I have for the show in the next few weeks- so, if anyone actually does read the ridiculous amount of multi-chapter stories I stupidly tried to take on all at once, apologises for not having updated in.. months.

But I'm rambling now, so I'll shut up. Reviews are much appreciated- oh, and check out iCabal, a wonderful group of very talented people who write brilliant things for iCarly.


End file.
